Island



interior machinery.' i

The sloping portion of thetop is divided from the tnird tnirt cart with. A

AUGUSTUSV SIMPSON, or WooNSooKnT, Rhoon iSLAND, ASSIeNon `'.ro

WooNSooKEr moriA roUNDsY, or SAME Pinion.

Letters Patent No. 98,308, dated .December` 28, 1869.

MACHINE FOR FOLDING CLOTH.

The Schedule referred to in these Letters Patent: and makingprt of thesame 4top of the case being removed to show the interior machinery.

Figure 2 represents aver-tical transverse section, on

-line x a: of dg. 1.

Figure 3 is an end view of a portion of the machine, showing the devices for registering the number` of yards of clot-11 folded.v

The same letters are used in'all the figures to designate identical parts.

My invention relates to a machine for dressing, folding, and measuring cloth, as it comes from the loom; and

`My improvements consist in the combination -and` arrangement of sundry parts thereof, as will more fully f appear from the yfollowing specification and claims.

Totenable those. skilled in the art tomake and use my invention, I will proceed to describe its construction and operation;

A, in the drawings, represents a desk-like case,

which may be made of wood, and is to be mounted upon legs to raise it lto a convenient heigbtfrom the floor.

The sloping top consists, in part, of a hinged lid, A1,

closing an opening through which the roll of cloth is passedl into the case, and access may be had to theV narrow horizontal strip,'at the rear, by a slot, a, and to the front edge of this strip a narrow a-p, A, is hinged, partly covering said slot when turned'down, as shown.

In the intexiorfr'ont portieri of this case,a carriage, B, 4is'arranged for the reception of the cloth which it is intended to fold. It may be constructed, as .clearly 'shown in figs. 1 and 2, having a series of curved rods stretchedvacross it, upon which the cloth is supported,`

so that on nurolling the same, the least possible resistance may be oii'ered. The .length of the can'iage is somewhat less than that of the case, so that it can play endwise th'erein,fwhich movement is facilitated by placing it upon rollers, as shown.

C represents the stretcher arranged above the 'car-l curved side, of which the cloth is drawn for the pur, pose of smoothingand somewhat stretching the same.

D D represent two"friction ro1lers, arranged upon.

the upper ends of twovertical spindles D 1)', which' have their bearings in the bottom ot' the case A, and

suitable' standards secured thereon, in rear of the car-- ringe. These rollersare equidistant from the centre line of the case, and the distance between their peripheries, at the points .where they are nearest to, each other,is about equal to the width of the cloth to be folded, which,as it is drawn over the' strctclier,;passes between such rollers, so that its edges come in contact therewith for the purpose of guiding it, sothat it maybe folded evenlyrfor if, at any time, the roll of cloth should leave its central position between these rollers, one or. the other of them will press against the edge of the cloth -and cause the carriage in which thecloth lies to move eudwise untilv the cloth is again in the proper position.

Small friction-rollers, D? D, are placed upon the Vvertical spindles D1, which come in contact with 'ways V, on the rear side of the carriage, near the top thereof,

to hold itin proper position, and cause it vto move parallel to the rolls and brushes.

E- is a horizontal guide-roll, located in rear of the n friction-rollers D, and journaled in the ends ofthe case, so that its underfsuriace is in nearly the same horizontalplane with the friction-rollers I), and its rear surface vertically under and between the revolving brushesE Fl.

rJlhe cloth, after passing under vthe guide-'roll E, is drawn up between these brushes, to be thoroughly cleaned, such brushes being'niade to revolve at a rapid rate in opposite directions.A

F is' another horizontal roll, jonrnaled in the ends of the' case, and located above the brushes in the slot a., and so that the cloth, on passing over it, is drawn down over the sloping top of the case, where it can be inspected by the operator.

G represents a roll, jonrnaled in biackets or. supports A3 A3, 'secured tothe ends ofthe case A, at the iront thereof. One journal of this roll' projects through one ot the brackets, and upon this overhung portion a pulley is secured, by which it is revolved, the pulley receiving itsmotion from any convenient motor.

The cloth is passed downward from the outer edge of the lid A1, and passed under the roll'G, and then upward over a smaller roll, H, which` is in front o f, and in close proximity to the roll G, as shown.

" The journals ofthe roll H have their bearin s in' 1 .represents themovable jaw,`the ends of which 4slide in vertical guides in the brackets A?, it -being supported `upon springs i t', which tend to always thrust it upward and bring it in contact with the staftionary upper jaw.

K represents what I term the knife, located under l the rolls G and H, and extending horizontally from one bracket to the other, where it is placed in guides, whereinit may slide horizontally back and forward;

Springs k k, attached, at one end, to the case, and, at the other, to the ends of the knife, hold it in the rear end of the guides when not operated upon.

The upper lsurface of the knife is to he about in the same plane with the under surface of the stationary jaw I, or the least below it.

Near each end of the knife, a projection is formed or secured upon its upper surface, which shall be engaged, cn each revolution of the rollerG, by cams G' G', secured upon the journals of such roll, so as to force the knife forward and canse it to enter a short distance between the jaws of the clamp. The cloth hanging down between Vthe front edge of the knifev and the clamp, will thus be pushethby the knife,in to the clamp,

Vand a fold formed on each revolution of the roll G.

The knife is returned to its normal position by the springs k k, immediately on its being released from with his foot upon the treadle K,which, heilig connected by a' rod, 7:', to the movable jaw I, will draw this down, and thus the folded cloth be released from the clamp.

L represents a disk, the circumference ot' which is equal to exactly one yard. It is arranged upon the end of a horizontal shaft, L', havin its bearings in boxes secured to the front side of'v tie case A, along which it extends to just beyond one ofitsemi's. The periphery of this disk 'or wheel `is so ciose to the periphery of `theroll G, that the cloth, passing between them, shall cause the disk to rotate. i i

To insure the constant rotation of such disk, it may have short projecting pins in its periphery, which shall take hold of the cloth as it passes over them. Inthis case, a groove is iliade around the roll Goppp`site such disk.

Upon the outer end of the shaft L1, a worm, L,4 is

formed, which engages and drives a worm-wheel, L,

of March, 1869.

esta

upon a vertical spindle, pivoted in steps upon the end ofthe case A.

Upon the upper end of such spindle, a dial-plate, L4, is fastened, revolving-,under a stationary pointer, L5, and having figures marked upon its upper surface, which indicate the number of yards of cloth folded, as they come under the pointer.

To remove the diiiculty there would be in passing the ends of the cloth, on first starting the operation, up between the brushes and through the slot in the top of the case by hand,-I have `provided a slat, M, havingpins 'min its rear edge, upon which to fasten theeud of the cloth.

yThis slat is operated by cords iii/il M1, one end of which is secured to pulleys M2 M?, upon which a portion is wound. y

Their other ends are passed under the roll E, up

between the brushes, and through the slot over, the

roll F, where they are fastened to a bar, M.

The pulleys M2 revolve upon studs fastened in the ends of the case, and are connected, by cords m m', to springs M4 M4, as shown'.

The end of the cloth having been attached to the slat M, the machine is started, which causes' the brushes -to be revolved.

The cloth is then drawn up by pulling the cords M1 outward, by means of the bar M3, until such slat is drawn 4through the slot a, when the cloth may be taken hold of by the hand and disengaged from the slat, which is immediately returned into the case by the action ot' thesprings M", which cause the pulleys M2 to wind up the ccrdsMl.

Insteadof springs, weights may be employed for opervziting the slat M, the knife' K, and the movable jaw e Having thus described my invention,

What I claim, and desire-to secure by Letters Pat- 1. The knife K, jaws I and I', in combination with the rolls G and AH, brushes F and F1, friction-rollers D D, stretcher O, and carriage B, all arranged and operating substantially as and for the purposes set forth.

2. The wheel or disk L, in combination witlrthe roll G, knife K, and jaws I and I',-all constructed and operating substantially` as described.

3. The combination of the pulleys M?, slat M, cords M1, cords m, and springs M4, substantially as and for the purpose set forth. l The above specification signed AUGUSTUS sIMPsoN.

by me, 'this 4th day Witnessesb FRANK E. WILKINSON, LELAND D. J aucuns. 

